As most of you know, a sorry excuse for a hurricane came through and beat up the east coast a bit. By late Sunday afternoon, it was sunny and beautiful again. Monday was perfect, and today was just as nice. Since I had time today, I went for a cross ride in Valley Green.
Valley Green (A.K.A. Forbidden Drive, Wissahickon, or "The Wiss") is a beautiful stretch of parkland in northwest Philadelphia. It's a great place for Mt. biking or leisurely riding. The dirt at The Wiss has a distinct shimmer to it. I'm not sure what kind of rock it is, but you can look at anyone's tires and know immediately that they have been riding there.
The main path is Forbidden Drive, so called because you can't drive on 99% of it. When it crosses roads, it always has the right of way. It follows the Wissahickon Creek and has many gorgeous view along the way. There are any number of places where you can take paths up and run, Mt. bike, ride horses, or just hike. It's absolutely beautiful at every time of year.
The downside to the path is that it is usually very well maintained and pretty flat and boring. It's gravel with a few rocks here and there, but not challenging in any way. It's meant for your average person, not your average cross bike. But, we just had a hurricane. Almost the entire path was underwater for the better part of a day, and that water really did a number to the pristine path. Trees down, sections of gravel washed away, run off from the multiple streams in the higher ground surrounding it... it was completely ruined. Perfect for cross riding.
Last night I finally got around to throwing the S900 crank on my bike and dialing it in. The chain rings are 46/38 and if you're used to road bike gearing, the cross gearing just looks ridiculous. It still rides like a bike though.
I started off at a quick pace, probably because I was pretty excited. As soon as I crossed Bells Mill Rd, I came smack into a dose of reality. I saw the barriers the city had put up, but kept riding at full speed. It wasn't until I was right up on the enormous holes in the path that I made any attempt to slow and change my course. Too late. God, cantilever brakes suck.
Normally, at this point in the story, I would be telling you about the fall I had just had. Not today. I relaxed my shoulders and just went for it, bounced my way through and kept on riding. Other than being a frightened for a moment, I was fine. Just more cautious.
Because I refuse to wear contacts (they feel weird and I don't like touching my eye), and I don't wear prescription glasses when I ride, Things tend to sneak up on me when I ride off road. It makes things slightly challenging, but I manage. It made riding today very challenging, but I enjoyed every minute of it. I was caught off guard by the giant boulder field that had sprouted up where there was just smooth gravel before. It was the only place on the whole trail where I had to dismount for any long period of time. I tried riding across it on the way into the city, but made it maybe 10 yards into it before I lost too much momentum.
When I reached the end of Forbidden Drive, I made the right hand turn onto the path that takes you down to the Ridge and Kelly intersection. That part of the path was fantastic. The water had ripped trees out of the ground right by the sidewalk, so huge portions of sidewalk were just gone. Trees were down every couple of hundred yards, and there were either ways to get through/around them, or there weren't. Lots of dismount/remount opportunities. I had so much fun, and finally saw another two people with cross bikes out doing the same thing. Neither of them said "hi" back.
My Dad lives on Mt Airy St, and at the bottom of his street is an access point into the park. On my way back, I called to see if he was there and then rode up to his house. I knew it was up hill for a few blocks, but I was thinking two or three. Not five or six. It was a long, slow climb. The first section was about 6-8% on gravel and loose rocks. While out of the saddle, I had the rear wheel slip so badly that I thought I was going down right on my face. I geared out and sat down and just crept out of the park and onto the road. At first, the pavement felt great. Much easier than the rocks, but that only lasted for a few feet, because the grade hadn't changed. A 38T small ring still sucks for climbing.
After about three blocks of just dying, I seriously thought about getting off and walking. But then it let off and I just spun the next two blocks until my heart-rate calmed down and before I knew it the road leveled off and I was at my Dad's. But not before I went to the wrong house. What? He moved for the first time in 14 years and I still don't know his address. So what.
The ride back down was just that, and the stone section was a little crazy, but fun. The ride back to my car seemed too short. Tired, hands hurting from bouncing around, and covered in muck, I hopped in my car and drove home. I then spent the time required to wipe down my bike and clean everything by hand. No power washing here. As I swept away the glint of Wiss dirt, I couldn't help by smile. I really love riding bikes and plan on doing a lot more of it.
30 August, 2011
14 August, 2011
Good Ride
6:50AM. I wake up feeling tired and like I've been hit by a car. There isn't a single part of me that wants to get up, but I promised I would. It's pouring steadily. I throw my bibs on and a jersey I don't care about, as well as some Primal socks that I secretly wish would just go away, but today they are just what I want. I quickly eat a Larabar and fill my water bottles. I grab a dry set of civilian clothes for after the ride and put air in my tires. 90psi front and back, the ground is soaked.
Bike on the car, glasses spotted with rain, I drive off to the shop. I'm meeting Jeremy, Isaac and Lacey for our weekly morning ride. We call it the "Sunday Morning Mustache Ride" because most of us have a kit with mustaches all over it. It's a gentlemen's kit, and today is not the day to ruin it. Remember, Primal socks.
Halfway there, I get a text from Isaac asking if it's too wet. I text him back, letting him know that if I don't see him there in ten minutes, I'm getting a bearded clam jersey made for him because he's a vagina. He shows up ten minutes late.
At least he shows up. Jeremy, who was big talk the Friday before, doesn't show. Isaac quips that it's a shame his mouth can't ride a bike. The second I heard rain, it was common knowledge that Lacey wouldn't show. It never enters our minds to wait for him.
After putting Isaac in the power seat to determine if we'll ride, he is forced to get his bike from his car. Cold, wet, and unsure, we head out with a gentlemen's agreement to turn around if it gets too bad. Deep down, neither of us would ever admit if it was for fear of the never ending hard time that would surely be dished out, even if the other party agreed. Just one of the perks of being a ball buster, I guess.
For the past three months, I've felt sluggish and out of shape on my bike. Part of it is that I'm out of shape. I still weigh what I did over the winter, which is fifteen pounds more than I did last summer. No matter how much I've been riding on my bike (five times in the past seven days) it always feels like my legs just don't have it in them. I feel tired and have no ability to recover. Isaac, on the other hand, spent six weeks in a Powertap training class and has been breaking the legs off of me all season. Every single time. Beating me up hills, riding longer and faster, just pummeling me. It's been a sore spot for me, and I haven't been able to figure out what the cause has been.
Today was a return to the days of old. I felt fantastic. Hills of all shapes and sizes were dispatched without effort. Short and steep, long and steady, what had until today been my nemesis, all crushed. It was like every pedal stroke was me stomping defeat on the hills. And god forbid I got out of the saddle. Where as before I would gear out almost immediately, today it was middle of the cassette and climbing with speed. Isaac, not so much.
Where as he had spent all summer feeling good and leaving me behind, today Isaac's legs left him. While I was off kicking vertical ascents into submission, Isaac was suffering and getting his ass handed to him behind me. While I would love to think that I was just so on form today that I crushed him, he was so far behind on some hills that it was obvious he didn't have it. At one point he said it felt like his legs never warmed up. I felt all conquering and like an asshole, all at the same time.
At the end of the last hill, I congratulated him for killing himself up the hills and never quitting. We both commented on how we were really happy that neither of us bailed because of the weather. We also make fun of our less brave co-workers until we run out of insults. It takes surprisingly longer than one might think.
I've been riding in the rain so much since I put my bike together that I commented on how much better the 105 brakes were in the dry, but that in the wet, the pads on the force brakes were infinitely better. Isaac replied with "how would you know, have you even ridden that bike in the dry yet?"
After getting back to the shop, we changed into dry clothes and spent the better part of an hour working on our bikes. No one in the shop, all lights off except for the front lights in the work area, we stood there disassembling and cleaning our bikes while talking about whatever came up. Had it been slightly later in the day, and I had a beer, it would have been perfection.
As we were finishing up, Our GM Scott arrived at work. He glanced at my tires (which I had just rotated) and asked if I wanted new ones. Normally, this means he has a pair he wants to sell. I asked him what kind. "Specialized." While I love most of their products, I generally don't like their tires. I decline and he responds with "they're brand new and they're free." Done, where do I sign?
Feeling good about just about everything at this moment, Isaac and I head down to the local coffee joint where he gives me a hard time about the fact that I drink tea. Bistro boy with the mutton chops comes to my defense. Not today Isaac, things are going too well for me.
One of the reasons I don't frequent coffee shops (aside from my dislike of coffee) is that with the current options on-tap to keep our ADD, "I kneed more choices" culture happy, I can't just walk into a place and order tea without follow up questions. "Is English Breakfast Tea okay?" Yes, but I'd prefer it if you would just call it by its common name... tea.
After some pastries and our hot beverage of choice, we head out and return home. At this point it is pouring again and just about all the work I had done on my bike is, quite literally, washed away. Good thing most of it is made of carbon. I hop in my car, glasses spotted with rain, and head home, filled with excitement and hoping tomorrow comes soon enough so I can ride my bike again.
Bike on the car, glasses spotted with rain, I drive off to the shop. I'm meeting Jeremy, Isaac and Lacey for our weekly morning ride. We call it the "Sunday Morning Mustache Ride" because most of us have a kit with mustaches all over it. It's a gentlemen's kit, and today is not the day to ruin it. Remember, Primal socks.
Halfway there, I get a text from Isaac asking if it's too wet. I text him back, letting him know that if I don't see him there in ten minutes, I'm getting a bearded clam jersey made for him because he's a vagina. He shows up ten minutes late.
At least he shows up. Jeremy, who was big talk the Friday before, doesn't show. Isaac quips that it's a shame his mouth can't ride a bike. The second I heard rain, it was common knowledge that Lacey wouldn't show. It never enters our minds to wait for him.
After putting Isaac in the power seat to determine if we'll ride, he is forced to get his bike from his car. Cold, wet, and unsure, we head out with a gentlemen's agreement to turn around if it gets too bad. Deep down, neither of us would ever admit if it was for fear of the never ending hard time that would surely be dished out, even if the other party agreed. Just one of the perks of being a ball buster, I guess.
For the past three months, I've felt sluggish and out of shape on my bike. Part of it is that I'm out of shape. I still weigh what I did over the winter, which is fifteen pounds more than I did last summer. No matter how much I've been riding on my bike (five times in the past seven days) it always feels like my legs just don't have it in them. I feel tired and have no ability to recover. Isaac, on the other hand, spent six weeks in a Powertap training class and has been breaking the legs off of me all season. Every single time. Beating me up hills, riding longer and faster, just pummeling me. It's been a sore spot for me, and I haven't been able to figure out what the cause has been.
Today was a return to the days of old. I felt fantastic. Hills of all shapes and sizes were dispatched without effort. Short and steep, long and steady, what had until today been my nemesis, all crushed. It was like every pedal stroke was me stomping defeat on the hills. And god forbid I got out of the saddle. Where as before I would gear out almost immediately, today it was middle of the cassette and climbing with speed. Isaac, not so much.
Where as he had spent all summer feeling good and leaving me behind, today Isaac's legs left him. While I was off kicking vertical ascents into submission, Isaac was suffering and getting his ass handed to him behind me. While I would love to think that I was just so on form today that I crushed him, he was so far behind on some hills that it was obvious he didn't have it. At one point he said it felt like his legs never warmed up. I felt all conquering and like an asshole, all at the same time.
At the end of the last hill, I congratulated him for killing himself up the hills and never quitting. We both commented on how we were really happy that neither of us bailed because of the weather. We also make fun of our less brave co-workers until we run out of insults. It takes surprisingly longer than one might think.
I've been riding in the rain so much since I put my bike together that I commented on how much better the 105 brakes were in the dry, but that in the wet, the pads on the force brakes were infinitely better. Isaac replied with "how would you know, have you even ridden that bike in the dry yet?"
After getting back to the shop, we changed into dry clothes and spent the better part of an hour working on our bikes. No one in the shop, all lights off except for the front lights in the work area, we stood there disassembling and cleaning our bikes while talking about whatever came up. Had it been slightly later in the day, and I had a beer, it would have been perfection.
As we were finishing up, Our GM Scott arrived at work. He glanced at my tires (which I had just rotated) and asked if I wanted new ones. Normally, this means he has a pair he wants to sell. I asked him what kind. "Specialized." While I love most of their products, I generally don't like their tires. I decline and he responds with "they're brand new and they're free." Done, where do I sign?
Feeling good about just about everything at this moment, Isaac and I head down to the local coffee joint where he gives me a hard time about the fact that I drink tea. Bistro boy with the mutton chops comes to my defense. Not today Isaac, things are going too well for me.
One of the reasons I don't frequent coffee shops (aside from my dislike of coffee) is that with the current options on-tap to keep our ADD, "I kneed more choices" culture happy, I can't just walk into a place and order tea without follow up questions. "Is English Breakfast Tea okay?" Yes, but I'd prefer it if you would just call it by its common name... tea.
After some pastries and our hot beverage of choice, we head out and return home. At this point it is pouring again and just about all the work I had done on my bike is, quite literally, washed away. Good thing most of it is made of carbon. I hop in my car, glasses spotted with rain, and head home, filled with excitement and hoping tomorrow comes soon enough so I can ride my bike again.
08 August, 2011
SRAM Force Is A Go (This will be long)
I've never built up my own bike before. I've adjusted bikes plenty, but actually starting from a frame and building up a bike is really time consuming, and really hard. I tore down the bike in what seemed like minutes. and I got everything together, cables cut and ready to adjust in not much more time. The chain was where the story begins.
Since I had never installed my own chain, I wanted one of the mechs to make sure I was doing it right. I started by wrapping the chain around the big ring up front and the big cog in the rear. I pulled the chain tight and he told me to stop, grabbed the chain, and pulled it tighter and said "break here." So I did as I was told.
I spent the next few minutes setting up the front and rear derailleurs. With all limits set, I shifted into the small ring and started going through the gears, making adjustments to tension as needed. Then I shifted into the big ring and started going through the gears. Everything was peachy until I hit the 26T cog in the rear. Cog and pulley were mulching my chain. "Hmm..." so I cranked out the B limit until i couldn't any more. Mulch.
Flabbergasted, I asked another mech to look at it. He spins the bike up to what seemed like 200rpm and starts shifting through the gears, ignoring what I had told him. MULCH!
It took him 5 minutes to unfuck my rear derailleur. When he did, he determined that the chain was too short. Original mech who told me where to break the chain took a look and came to the same conclusion. He bought me a new chain.
A day later, new chain is installed. Mulch. New mech is like "WTF?" We tried everything we could think of, but nothing would fix it. I finally said "fuck it" and we dialed in the rest of the bike and left it at me not being able to use my 25, 26 or 28T while in the big ring. Fine, I shouldn't be in those gears any way, but accidents do happen from time to time.
Today I went out to test ride it. I love compact gearing. I use so much more of my cassette now and my knees felt fine the whole time. There were times where I felt like I was too strong for the gearing, but then I would look down and see I still had two more cogs left and I should shut up.
As much as I liked the gearing, I hated how much I had to think about where I was in the cassette and the fact that I was shifting more in the front than I was in the rear. I rode my new found route to the shop because I wanted to see what it was like. Harder than I thought, but I also couldn't use my 28T in either ring because the RD started hitting spokes.
When I got to the shop, the new mech (Ryan) said he would take a look at the bike. My rear wheel was out of true (I knew that) and that it was still shifting terrible (no shit).
He trued my wheel and adjusted my low limit and "BAM!" all of the sudden my bike was shifting properly. We could get it into the 28T no problem on the front ring and were able to adjust the shifting so it's perfect in the rear. Perfect.
Completely befuddled, we decided to work on the front shifting. Getting into the small cog was not an issue, but shifting up, the chain would grind against the FD for a second and then shift up. We adjusted limits, raised the FD and adjusted again. All we accomplished was getting the chain to spit off the front ring and then adjusting it back to how it was when we started. It shifts perfectly half the time, and like shit the other half, but it'll have to do. The shifting on my cross bike was like that when I got it, but once the cables broke in, it started to shift fine every time. Here's to hoping the same will happen this time.
I get made fun of at the shop every time I tell people that SRAM takes more time to set up properly than Shimano or Campy, but it's true. Once everything breaks in and it's dialed in, it's perfect for me and I don't want anything else. That feeling is why I made the switch.
As an aside, when I bought my Tarmac, it weighed 19.5lbs. That's incredibly fat for a carbon road bike. When I had the King/IRD wheels built up, I dropped the weight down to 18.6lbs. Not bad, but still kind of a porker. Changing to Force has dropped the weight down to 17.4lbs. Not as light as I would like, but not bad either. I was hoping for sub 17lbs, but with pedals, two bottle cages and my Garmin sensors and magnets (but not the head unit), 17.4 isn't bad at all. There are plenty of other things I could do to drop the weight a little more, but I'm going to leave it how it is. It's such a nice bike at this point, I cant justify changing it. For now.
Since I had never installed my own chain, I wanted one of the mechs to make sure I was doing it right. I started by wrapping the chain around the big ring up front and the big cog in the rear. I pulled the chain tight and he told me to stop, grabbed the chain, and pulled it tighter and said "break here." So I did as I was told.
I spent the next few minutes setting up the front and rear derailleurs. With all limits set, I shifted into the small ring and started going through the gears, making adjustments to tension as needed. Then I shifted into the big ring and started going through the gears. Everything was peachy until I hit the 26T cog in the rear. Cog and pulley were mulching my chain. "Hmm..." so I cranked out the B limit until i couldn't any more. Mulch.
Flabbergasted, I asked another mech to look at it. He spins the bike up to what seemed like 200rpm and starts shifting through the gears, ignoring what I had told him. MULCH!
It took him 5 minutes to unfuck my rear derailleur. When he did, he determined that the chain was too short. Original mech who told me where to break the chain took a look and came to the same conclusion. He bought me a new chain.
A day later, new chain is installed. Mulch. New mech is like "WTF?" We tried everything we could think of, but nothing would fix it. I finally said "fuck it" and we dialed in the rest of the bike and left it at me not being able to use my 25, 26 or 28T while in the big ring. Fine, I shouldn't be in those gears any way, but accidents do happen from time to time.
Today I went out to test ride it. I love compact gearing. I use so much more of my cassette now and my knees felt fine the whole time. There were times where I felt like I was too strong for the gearing, but then I would look down and see I still had two more cogs left and I should shut up.
As much as I liked the gearing, I hated how much I had to think about where I was in the cassette and the fact that I was shifting more in the front than I was in the rear. I rode my new found route to the shop because I wanted to see what it was like. Harder than I thought, but I also couldn't use my 28T in either ring because the RD started hitting spokes.
When I got to the shop, the new mech (Ryan) said he would take a look at the bike. My rear wheel was out of true (I knew that) and that it was still shifting terrible (no shit).
He trued my wheel and adjusted my low limit and "BAM!" all of the sudden my bike was shifting properly. We could get it into the 28T no problem on the front ring and were able to adjust the shifting so it's perfect in the rear. Perfect.
Completely befuddled, we decided to work on the front shifting. Getting into the small cog was not an issue, but shifting up, the chain would grind against the FD for a second and then shift up. We adjusted limits, raised the FD and adjusted again. All we accomplished was getting the chain to spit off the front ring and then adjusting it back to how it was when we started. It shifts perfectly half the time, and like shit the other half, but it'll have to do. The shifting on my cross bike was like that when I got it, but once the cables broke in, it started to shift fine every time. Here's to hoping the same will happen this time.
I get made fun of at the shop every time I tell people that SRAM takes more time to set up properly than Shimano or Campy, but it's true. Once everything breaks in and it's dialed in, it's perfect for me and I don't want anything else. That feeling is why I made the switch.
As an aside, when I bought my Tarmac, it weighed 19.5lbs. That's incredibly fat for a carbon road bike. When I had the King/IRD wheels built up, I dropped the weight down to 18.6lbs. Not bad, but still kind of a porker. Changing to Force has dropped the weight down to 17.4lbs. Not as light as I would like, but not bad either. I was hoping for sub 17lbs, but with pedals, two bottle cages and my Garmin sensors and magnets (but not the head unit), 17.4 isn't bad at all. There are plenty of other things I could do to drop the weight a little more, but I'm going to leave it how it is. It's such a nice bike at this point, I cant justify changing it. For now.
04 August, 2011
Almost There
My bottom bracket finally showed up, along with my chain rings for the cross bike. I stripped everything but the stem, fork, front and rear derailleurs and crank from my road bike this afternoon, and went over to the shop at 5 to remove the rest and put the new stuff on. I forgot about a prior commitment though, and had to leave the shop before I was finished. All I have left to do is adjust my levers so they're even, adjust my brake pads so they contact the rim properly, tape down the cable housings to the bar and wrap the bar, adjust the front and rear derailleurs and cut cables. Once it's shifting right and I have everything dialed in, I'm going to have someone at the shop size me to makes sure my measurements were correct and then go for a test ride. Sunday morning will be the test ride, but more than half of the Sunday morning crew wont be there because of the She Rox Tri, or they're out of town. Maybe Tuesday will be the test ride. I'll take a picture when everything is finished and post it up for you. It looks good.
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